1. Field of the Description
The present description relates, in general, to creating durable yet realistic skin for robots or for use with robotics or other applications in which skin or similar coverings are applied (e.g., robotics used to simulate movement of a human's or a character's face, hands, or the like) or used such as wet suits and the like, and, more particularly, to a skin or artificial skin system with at least one reinforcement layer or sheet of reinforcement material (“reinforcement layer”) and to a method of forming a skin with a reinforcement layer.
2. Relevant Background
Durable materials that are often also flexible and elastic such as plastics and rubbers are used in many applications to create coverings or skins that are applied over an internal physical support structure or skeleton or that are worn such as wet suits for surfing, scuba diving, and other athletic or other activities. For example, artificial skins or skin systems are used to create realistic models of humans, animals, and characters, and, when combined with robotics, such skin-covered models may accurately simulate live beings.
Robotics involves the design and use of robots to provide programmable actuators or drivers to perform tasks without human intervention, and there have been significant demands for robotic devices (or robots as these terms may be used interchangeably) that simulate humans, animals, and other living beings or characters. These robotic characters are relied upon heavily in the entertainment industry to provide special effects for movies and television and to provide robots for use in shows and displays in amusement or theme parks. For example, robotics may be used to provide a character in a theme park ride or show that repeats a particular set of movements or actions (e.g., programmed tasks) based on the presence of guests or a ride vehicle or another triggering event.
It is likely that the interest in robotics will continue to expand in the coming years, and a growing area of interest is how to provide robots that appear more realistic. Many robotics companies have focused on creating robots with software, processing hardware, and mechanical actuators or drivers that allow the robots to behave more like the natural creature that is being simulated. Much work has been done to create robots that can move and even behave similar to humans such as by manipulating objects with mechanical assemblies that behave like hands configured to be human-like. Significant effort has also been directed to providing robots with realistic facial animation such as having a robot open and close its mouth to provide lip synchronization with output audio (e.g., with speech) and by providing particular facial movements including eye movement such as frowning, smiling, and the like. Similarly, much effort has been expended to provide realistically functioning arms and hands that can manipulate items and that have frequent and repeated movements and contact with surfaces and objects.
While many advances have been made in realistically simulating the physical movement and facial movement of a character, problems with maintaining a realistic or desired movement or facial animation still occur when the robotics (e.g., internal components of a robot including mechanical/structural portions as well as software, hardware, power systems, and the like) are covered with a skin or skin system, and the realism of the robotic figure or character may be furthered or hindered by the movements of the skin.
In simulating humans or human-like characters, the robotics are typically covered in a skin that is fabricated of flexible material to move naturally with the underlying robotics. The skin may be formed of a rubber material or a silicone that is attached or anchored to the mechanical actuators or drivers of the robotic system, and the skin is configured to have an outward appearance similar to the character or creature being simulated by the robot. For example, the facial skins can be formed so as to have an uncanny resemblance to the character (or person) they are imitating, but often this resemblance ends when the attached robotics begin animating the face. The skin typically is of a single material with one set of physical characteristics such as hardness, flexibility, and the like.
While these robotic skins need to be flexible, there are many applications where the skins preferably are also durable. A challenge to skin manufacturers has to be how to provide skin that is tougher and/or stronger at least in particular locations in the overall skin system without destroying the otherwise realistic movement and characteristics of the skin. For example, portions of a robotic skin may be placed under significant stresses due to repeated stretching, twisting, and other movements such as in the neck of a robot that is controlled to move the head frequently. In another example, a robot may manipulate items with its hands such that the skin may have a tendency to wear more quickly than other portions of the skin. In other skin systems, such as a wet suit, it may be useful to provide stronger or tougher skin in the elbows, knees, and other higher stress or wear areas of the skin.
Presently, skins are typically reinforced by providing a sheet of fabric reinforcement material on the inner (or outer) surface of the skin. In this manner, the reinforcement material abuts the robotics. To manufacture such a reinforced skin, a common practice is to first fabricate a mesh sock or sleeve of the stretchable reinforcement fabric. For example, the reinforcement fabric may be a mesh sheet formed of spandex (elastane) or similar elastic material. The sock or sleeve is then wrapped or stretched over a core or portion of the mold used to form the skin. This typically involves stretching the sock/sleeve as it is tightly fit to the core such that it stays firmly in contact with the surface of the core.
The skin material (such as a rubber that hardens to a desired hardness and provides a lifelike flexibility, stretchiness, and resilience) is then poured or pumped into the chamber defined between the exterior mold components and the inner core, which is covered (at least in part) by the sock/sleeve of reinforcement material. The skin material flows through the holes of the mesh sock/sleeve and against the core. After the skin solidifies, all or a portion of the exterior mold is removed to expose the reinforced skin. The skin is removed, and the reinforcement material is on or forms, or is integral to, the inner surface (or outer surface in some cases) of the skin. Hence, with existing techniques, the reinforcing material is always showing and provides the contact or mating surface when the skin is applied to a robotic device or placed in use.